Grey Zone
by Sakukotsu
Summary: 45 years have passed since the main events and modern Tokyo has become overflown with demons running amok. What is the link between the Higurashi Well and this post apocalyptic world?
1. Chapter 1

The Grey Zone

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, it belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. I do however own any non-canon characters made for this specific story.

Author's Note: So I was inspired to write this after re-watching Inuyasha after almost eight years of not watching the show. After looking at the terrible stories I once wrote for this site I felt compelled to explore some ideas I had back then and do something better with them. If you're also familiar with the Shin Megami Tensei series; GOOD! I was also inspired by that.

Chapter 1

When was the last time he was able to attend school without fighting for his life everyday? At the tender age of seventeen, Ryuta Yabanhito was acting as a body guard for the wealthy who needed a guardian to shield them from… them.

School attendance was a privilege he longed for, it would be much more preferable than having to clean his firearms of blood and organ tissues every night while listening to the drunken ramblings of his mother. He'd much rather put on just the black suited high school uniform than having to wear body armour underneath. The demons kept him away from being able to attend school so often that he didn't even bother putting the uniform on, he just stuck with his grandfather's old combat uniform.

Ryuta heard tales of a girl who was able to travel back and fourth between the modern age and feudal Japan; he scoffed at the notion before the demons had mysteriously begun to appear in this world. He often wondered that, if the stories were true, that she may have created this mess?

The plasma rifle he relied on was caked in demon blood; it took up a good portion of his evening just getting it off even with the use of every cleaning product that was within arm's reach! "Make sure that while you clean off demon blood you are wearing as much protective clothing and equipment as possible, you never know if a demon will be able to posses you even through their bodily fluids." The wise words of General Higurashi echoed through Ryuta's head.

The General had been at least in his mid forties and lived at the shrine where the so-called sacred tree was. They say the time travelling girl once lived there as well; or so Ryuta was told.

"Ryuta, you need to cut your hair!" his mother pestered. "And if you ain't gonna cut it then at least brush it and tie it up nicely!"

Once he finished cleaning off his prized firearm and sanitizing the family bathroom completely, he decided to comply with the drunken wishes of his ill mother. She was correct in the implication that his hair was getting long, his jet black hair was beginning to reach just past his shoulders. ' _When was the last time I cut it?'_ After five minutes of contemplation and brushing, he pulled out elastic from the sink's drawer as he started to pull his hair into a tight braid. ' _Close enough…'_ he figured despite his bangs hanging just above his eyes.

He put on his combat boots and headed down to the front foyer to head out. "Are you gonna go to school for once?" Ryuta held back the temptation to lie to her for she new damn well where he was off to- demon slaying for monetary gain, just as his brother did.

"I just accepted a job at the Higurashi family shrine; they say there's an issue over there." Ryuta sighed.

"Hey isn't that where that boss of yours once lived? How come he doesn't live there with his mom anymore?"

"This will mark the tenth time I have told you. The reason he doesn't live there anymore is because it's become an unsafe zone; that place in particular attracts some of the more powerful demons which were in contact with Shikon… or something like that."

Without any further word exchanges, he treaded on forward. Luckily for him the Higurashi residence was just two blocks from his home so he paced his way down, carrying weapons and all after he put his black gas onto his face. The miasma which seeped through the streets of Tokyo created an incredibly toxic environment.

In the distance, dark clouds were forming around the Higurashi residence.

"Hoy Ryuta, we could use your help right about now!" called out the familiar voice of a comrade. "Come on, hurry up slow poke this demon is proving to be a hassle!" Without any arguments, Ryuta rushed over in heist of the situation.

Standing before the crowd was a huge cloud of black smoke, Ryuta turned to his brash and hot headed comrade. "Good timing there Ryuta, now we stand a chance against this demon now that you're here to help you. A minute longer and we'd become fried slayers for lunch!"

"Now, now Hebiko let's not get too caught up in small chit chat." The gentle voice of another slayer spoke out.

Hebiko turned around and shouted, "Hey, someone needs to let Ryuta know that being late is unacceptable! I don't see you doing anything about it Nemuri!"

Ryuta rolled his eyes.

"That's enough you two." Ryuta glanced towards the last of the slayers, the only female in the group who seemed to be the most rational of all of them.

"Butt out of this Sakuya; you have no room to talk!" Hebiko turned his attention back to the cloud. "After all, you skip out on-!"

"Enough Hebiko…!" Shouts the sharp eyed man in the group; until now Ryuta had never heard him shout like that.

"Y-yes General Higurashi…!" Hebiko was then too petrified to speak any further.

"I'm glad you made it Ryuta, we have some trouble over here." The gruff man lurched forward towards Ryuta and pointed at a huge black cloud. "This demon emerged from our family well and has been wrecking havoc all over Tokyo. We've managed to stun the demon within. The demon inside that cloud must have come from the feudal era- and so, I made the decision to interrogate this demon so we can figure out what's going on with that well. You see, my sister used to travel back and fourth between eras using that well somehow but here's the problem."

"Back then, only she and a half demon were able to make such a journey. So perhaps through this demon we will be able to figure out what's going on!"

"Um General, I apologize for my back talk but what makes you think we can speak to this demon?" Nemuri interrupted. "I was only barely able to nullify his powers using Shikon, a skill which I still lack confidence in." Nemuri had the ability to utilize an ancient form of spiritual power simply known as Shikon; which he obtained through vigorous training from only the strongest of monks and priestesses which have emerged in Tokyo as of late. Shikon was ability in which however that very few demon hunters were capable of learning; they say it takes the strongest of will power in order to use it.

"Excellent question Nemuri. You see the demon which you sealed within that cloud is capable of understanding our speech. Because you used Shikon, he shouldn't be able to inflict harm on anyone." The General glanced towards Ryuta. "And this is where you come in, Ryuta. You're capable of negotiating with demons, so I want you to squeeze out as much information as you can out of this one."

Ryuta cautiously walked over to the dark cloud and looked up into it. He could barely make out what was inside of it, only to flinch when he heard a loud booming voice.

"You're a fool if you think you can negotiate with a demon." The clouds began to disappear and reveal a young red eyed demon who tied his hair in a long braid. "What makes you think I'd tell a scrawny human like you anything?"

"All I want to know is how you got here. Judging by your fashion sense I gather, you're from the feudal era." Ryuta stared the demon down. "I mean, what does a great powerful demon like you need to be in this era for? I've read all sorts of stories about you, Hiten of the Thunder Brothers, and cannot fathom why you'd even be interested in our era."

"Hold up… you mean to tell me that you're a fan of mine?! I'll admit that it's refreshing to hear that somebody at least has heard of me in this wretched world!" Hiten seemed to be flattered at least. Ryuta smirked; these types of demons were just about always predictable in how they'd respond to flattery. Low levelled demons were usually easy to social engineer as long as you were able to stay level headed and show no fear of them; fear was something they fed off of from their victims after all.

"Tell you what, since I like you I'll go back to my world if you can help me find my brother." Ryuta raised an eyebrow; this was far too easy to have been successful this quickly.

"I'm not interested in sending you back to your world. What I want to know is how you got here in the first place; your kind keeps bringing chaos to our world." Ryuta turned to the General for approval of this move. Although Ryuta's success rate was high, there were times when allied demons would turn around and try to kill him once they got what they wanted.

"Oh I get it, you're one of those kinds of people who think sucking up will get anywhere with me! Fine, I got here through that well over in that shrine." Hiten turned away with a completely disheartened glance. "I've heard rumours of this place containing the ingredients needed for recreating the Shikon Jewel of Four Souls, so naturally we came flocking over."

"That's all I need to know. In return, I'll help you find your brother." Ryuta held out his hand to Hiten. "You don't have to destroy the General's house just to find Maten."

Nemuri and Hebiko both stood there sharing the very same dumbfounded expression. "Don't mind my friends, they're just following orders." Ryuta laughed alongside with the two boys rather nervously.

"You better keep your end of the deal, mortal or you're going to find yourself dead!" Hiten hissed as he disappeared.

(0000000000000000000000000000000000000)

The demon hunter's base was located in a worn out warehouse in the middle of the city, protected by a barrier set up by those capable of utilizing spiritual powers as far as Ryuta knew. In his hand was a book on a legendary artefact simply known as _Mashinin-ka no Kami_ ; a term he was only roughly able to translate as "God in a Machine". His sapphire orbs were fixated on the story of it being capable of arranging and destroying worlds as it saw fit to do so; the very thought of it potentially existing made him shudder to think that if it were simply bored his entire existence would become moot.

"Hey what's that you got there?" Ryuta glanced upwards to Hebiko. His fine hair was covered by a red bandana which he kept on for reasons not even Ryuta could fathom, but always assumed it was just because Hebiko liked the style.

"Just some boring book I'm studying for our English assignment." Ryuta replied half heartedly.

"Why bother with some western text? That shit's boring!" Hebiko moaned. "No wonder you're not as high achieving as me, you just don't know where to look for good literature."

Nemuri then stepped into the conversation. "Ah, it's nice to hear you two speak of literature. I myself am fascinated with this historical fiction I am reading for our project, do you wish to hear what it is I'm reading?" Nemuri had allowed his jet black hair to reach down just above his shoulders, in a neatly combed style at that. Outside of the demon hunter uniform he preferred to be dressed in a full blown black school uniform unlike Hebiko, who was content in just wearing the white dress shirt and black pants outside of work.

"I wonder what a goody two shoes like you is reading; something religious I take it?" Hebiko cracked a grin. "Or maybe you're reading some of that hentai stuff!"

Nemuri's face became crimson. "Why would someone like me need to touch that kind of filth; I'll have you know that the book I am reading is in fact very interesting. It's told from the point of view of a woman who is a noblewoman and falls for the leader of the Band of Seven… and…. And…!" Nemuri was abruptly cut off by Hebiko putting an elbow on his shoulder.

"Okay now you've lost me; what is this 'Band of Seven' you speak of?"

"Ugh Hebiko don't you ever listen in class?! The Band of Seven was a group of ruthless mercenaries who were able to do the work of entire armies within a short amount of time. Long story short they were executed because they were deemed too dangerous." Nemuri scoffed at Hebiko's snorting. "I'll have you know that I happen to like this book because it gives us a different perspective."

"It's a fictionalized version of what happened because last I checked; the leader was especially the most ruthless of them all. He just gets romanticized because he was described as handsome by historians." Nemuri rolled his eyes at Hebiko's off handed comments.

"Knock it off Hebiko…" A stoic woman entered the room and glared at Hebiko. She was dressed in a white school uniform, wore white stockings and black boots. Her dark brown hair was in a hime-cut and tied back neatly in a low ponytail. "I've also read that book for the class project last year. Let's just say it's the reason I achieved higher grades." She smirked through her crimson lips.

"Good evening Lady Sakuya, how are you doing?" Nemuri chimed as he glanced at the woman's iron mask. "It's nice to see other people around here appreciate historical romance as I do."

Hebiko turned to Ryuta. "Changing the subject now; anyone else here think that we should check out that well at the Higurashi shrine tomorrow?"

"Now that you mention it, Hiten did say that the demons are coming through there. I'll search for his brother first before going down there." Ryuta yawned. "I think I'll rest up for the night before doing anything further."

END!

A/N: Sorry about the short chapter but I think that's enough to absorb for the readers out there. I am working on a novel at the same time so I probably won't be updating this too often. BUT, if you want to stay tuned for updates on my written works then please check out my blog:  .  your comments there will be very much appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

 _"Ah, you're awake now aren't you Ryuta?" the voice echoed in the white space. Ryuta was floating in the midst of nothingness, his body felt weightless as he wondered where he was at the moment. "This time you won't fuck up and get your ass killed, right?"_

 _"Who is speaking to me?" Ryuta's eyes widened as he found himself suddenly in the middle of a battlefield, surrounded by mutilated corpses of dead soldiers. Flames engulfed the bodies of the fallen whose only crime was being at the wrong place at the wrong time._

 _"Do you remember this place, Ryuta? Do you remember the thrill of battle you got when you bathed in the blood of those you despise?" Ryuta shook his head as his entire body became shaken up. "Now, now there's no need to deny your true nature is there Ryuta?"_

 _"Who are you?"_

 _"Who am I? Well I knew it would come down to me giving you a history lesson." Suddenly before Ryuta a young man appeared before him. He had a long waist length black braid and was dressed in mostly white, with toeless boots and fingerless gloves. His armour was pale blue with only one shoulder pad on. "I am you. You are me. I reincarnated into you, so you better not disappoint me."_

Sweat trickled down Ryuta's head as he woken up with a rapid heartbeat. _'It's that dream again…'_ he clenched onto the sheets with all the strength he could muster in his mid slumber state.

"Ryuta, wake up! Your friend is waiting for you." His mother's familiar voice encouraged him to sit up from his sheets. He looked over to his chair that was pulled away from his desk and grabbed his school uniform that was just hung over it. Ryuta half heartedly put it on before rushing down the stairs and dashed to the front door after putting his shoes on.

Just as Ryuta was tying up his shoes, his frail mother came out to the front foyer to him with a packed lunch. "So you actually are going to school today?" for the first time in a while a gentle smile was drawn onto her pale face, right before she begun to hack up blood as she normally did for the past two weeks. "Would you mind bringing your one friend over… what's his name again? You know the one who brings medicine."

She had been referring to Nemuri, one of the few people in the demon hunter organization with any sort of medical knowledge. Many times he had smuggled pain killers and antibiotics for Ryuta's sickly mother; even though there was no gain for Nemuri out of this, he simply did it out of the kindness of his heart.

Opening the door revealed Nemuri, who had been looking through his notebook. "Good morning, shall we make haste to school?" Ryuta never understood how Nemuri was able to look perfect even after a day of demon hunting. His uniform was put on in textbook perfection, his hair neatly combed and trimmed with his face containing not a single flaw. At times, Ryuta was envious of this perfection.

"You should put your hair up before we walk in, I'd hate for the instructor to yell at you to cut your hair. I think it'd be a shame if you cut it just because of that, I think it's actually kind of pretty."

Out from his pocket Ryuta pulled out elastic and started to gather his hair back to put into a high ponytail.

"Anyways, I thought I should bring this up with you but did you notice anything odd about that demon we ran into yesterday?" Ryuta shook his head. "When I went to tend to my wounds this morning I had noticed that it looked as though nothing was ever inflicted, as if the injuries were a mere illusion. If my research on the subject matter is correct, I believe that we ran into a ghost."

Ryuta looked on baffled; he had thought only humans could become ghosts. "Even stranger than that is all the damage Hiten had done was magically repaired as soon as he disappeared. I heard the monastery going ballistic over this a few weeks ago when a hair demon showed up and the same thing happened- no one was really harmed, but it certainly did feel real."

It was then Ryuta had been reminded that Nemuri was raised by monks at the orphanage which had been protected by the Monastery's barrier. For as long as Ryuta had known Nemuri, he had always been a soft spoken and gentle young man who never would raise a hand against another human being unless absolutely needed due to being brought up on pacifism.

Even so, Nemuri's voice was a little shaken up. "I don't know what to make of all of this, but something tells me that we need to do something about these ghosts… who knows what they might be capable of."

"Off topic Nemuri but you do you mind bringing a stronger prescription of antibiotics? My mother's illness keeps getting worse…"

"I can do that for you Ryuta but I do hope you realize the dire consequences if the pharmacy were to catch onto me using the drugs for purposes outside of hunting demons. I'd have my licence revoked!" Nemuri said this anytime Ryuta would ask for such a favour. "Especially once they get suspicious about how you're able to fight demons but keep getting severe symptoms such as cold sweat and blood hacking."

"I know that Nemuri; I'll pay you back once I have the money to do so." He said this every time. "It's just that her symptoms keep getting worse with each passing day and I don't know what to do anymore."

"Let me take a look at her once we get dismissed from school, to see if my suspicions are true. I lost my younger sister to tuberculosis just last year and she had a lot of the very same symptoms as your mother."

The conversation was cut to a halt when a pair of small pale arms hugged both boys and pulled them back. "Hey boy toys!" chirped the voice of a young girl who stood in between them. She took a few steps ahead of them and then patted their heads.

"Miss Chikane Narusaga, shouldn't you be already at school by now?!" Nemuri scolded her in the normal patronizing tone he would take towards the junior freshman. Chikane hadn't gone to the same school as Ryuta and Nemuri, if her black blazer and red skirt uniform were of any indication. The bubbly girl was, as usual, unfazed by Nemuri's scolds and just stood there readjusting her tie and messing with the creases around her black stockings with a dumb looking smile on her face.

"You know just as well as I that your school is far more interesting than the pristine one I go to; everyone's so uptight over there!" Ryuta had held back on the temptation to touch the girl's luscious curls which hung neatly over her chest; every now and then he would fantasize about brushing his hands through her gorgeous curls just so he would know how soft they were.

Ryuta then just walked ahead, being once again afraid his own thoughts would turn towards something impure. "By the way have you guys seen Sakuya?" Chikane frowned. "She promised she'd meet up with me this morning but her dad says she left at midnight and hasn't been back since."

"That's strange; we'll let you know if she shows up at school. Nemuri rushed to catch up with Ryuta. "Now you stay out of trouble Chikane!"

Nemuri had scrambled to catch up with Ryuta, who had been struggling to keep on a straight face. "What's your issue Ryuta?! You do this every time Chikane shows up, tell me what's up!"

"I just… I have this really strong urge…" Ryuta had to paused mid sentence, how was he going to say it without sounding like a potential rapist? "I have a really strong urge to…. Run my fingers through those gorgeous curls!" Nemuri raised an eyebrow.

"You have issues Ryuta!" Nemuri retorted. Once they were sure that they had lost Chikane, Nemuri continued on. "Why on earth would you want to touch someone else's hair without their permission; that's just wrong… besides, she's a junior high student and we are in our final year?"

Ryuta looked on to Nemuri with a completely straight face. "Can I brush my fingers through your hair?" in truth, the first thing Ryuta always noticed first about any person was their hair. If their hair looked soft, he always felt a need to brush through it… Nemuri's was no exception. "I mean, you have really pretty hair!"

Nemuri's face was crimson as he turned away to stare at his book bag. "You're really weird Ryuta." He sighed. "But, if it'll stop you from grabbing other people's hair randomly… you can touch mine." Ryuta reached his hand out slowly, shaking as the anticipation was built up. He savoured every stroke he made over that fine silk like black hair; the feeling was too good to be real.

"Ryuta…" Nemuri whimpered, as if begging for more. Ryuta was being as slow and gentle as he could, after all he didn't want to potentially wreck Nemuri's hair.

"Yes Nemuri…?" Ryuta answered as he pulled back.

"Oh please don't stop!" Nemuri pleaded as he pulled Ryuta's hand back over. "I like the feeling of your gentle hand on me."

The sound of the school bells suddenly stopped the two from continuing doing…. Whatever you can call that. "Meet me at my house after school!" Ryuta shouted as he rushed over to the school, leaving Nemuri standing there crimson faced.

 _"Yes I shall…"_

(0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000)

It felt as though it has been eons since the last time Ryuta got the chance to sit down in his desk and just listen to the instructor carry on with the daily lesson. In a way it felt refreshing to sit down in class for eight hours and relax- something he never got the chance to do in the past few months very often.

He had shared his last class of the day with Hebiko. It was odd for Ryuta to see Hebiko not wearing his bandana, as he had forgotten about the black buzz cut hidden underneath it.

As the two finished their final class, they ended up meeting down the hall way. "Hoy, Ryuta!" Hebiko waved as Ryuta tried to make his way down the stairs to the main lobby. "Have you seen Sakuya at all today? She didn't show up for Bio today!"

"Why does everyone need her suddenly?" Ryuta groaned. "She went to the shrine last night. If she did have a run in with a demon then I'm sure she's capable of dealing with it herself!"

"Don't you think we should go check it out?" Hebiko frowned, he wasn't about to tolerate Ryuta's attitude. "What if she's dead?"

"If you're that worried, how about Nemuri and I meet up with you at the shrine tonight then?" Ryuta rushed away.

Hebiko grinned and grabbed Ryuta's shoulders. "You and Nemuri… I see, why don't I tag along with you two then?"

"No, we have plans!" Ryuta protested.

"Oh really… what sort of plans?" Hebiko's dirty grin was more than enough to set Ryuta off into pushing him away. Hebiko's face then was red as a beet. "You can't be serious… you're actually going to do it with Nemuri of all people?!"

"Get your head out of the gutter; I'm only going to get medication for my mother from Nemuri!"

END OF CHAPTER 2 ebikothe


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